Hunt for the Artifact
by Prized Failure
Summary: The story is the 2nd of 3. It revolves around the 5th Regiment of the Imperial Guard who have found a Chaos artifact and their mission is to get it to the waypoint for further study.


Hunt for the Artifact

Chapter 1

The men of the 5th Regiment Inquisitorial Storm Troopers were coming upon the second month of their tour on the dead world. Veteran Sergeant Milo Cohen has already lost a dozen men and four others marked Missing in Action. Lieutenant Gil Yankzer, promoted on the battlefield, stepped out of his quarters and squinted due to the bright sunlight. He walked over to his self-made fire and started to cook his breakfast. Men greeted him as they passed, while others sat down next to the fire to talk with Gil.

There's been no sign of Chaos inhabitants for about a week now. The last big battle was a victory on behalf of Trooper Simon Drexel. He and his partner James Cafin infiltrated a Chaos camp and strapped explosive packs inside and around the camp, igniting the charges minutes later. It caught the Marines by surprise and the 5th Regiment collected 25 kills that night. Simon, two years older than 15-year-old Cafin, was rewarded with a symbol of bravery that he keeps pinned to his uniform under his carapace armour.

Milo slid out of his quarters late in the day. His face scarred and his expressions tired. Men walked by him, but were reluctant to greet him. All they did was nod and quickly walked away. With a smug look, Milo made his way around camp, keeping a close eye on everyone. Ever since a month ago when four of his men took off with the objective, Milo trusted no one. He finished his route around camp and slipped back into his quarters. The area he and his men occupied didn't have sandstorms, rather only a small breeze. Milo tossed his helmet and carapace armour onto his cot and walked over to a map of the area. He scanned it, trying to figure out where traitor Bastian Claze took _his_ artifact. With only 20 miles to the waypoint, he knew that Bastian would try to get there as soon as he could, though he was dumb enough to leave behind his maps and compass…as did the other three. He also knew that those men were short on ammunition for they weren't around when a supply ship dropped off the much needed armour, food, ammunition and survival supplies. _If I can pinpoint where Claze and the artifact are, I can redirect the regiment; find Claze and the men; kill them; take my precious artifact back; and head back towards the waypoint_. Milo smiled at his plan, when he was interrupted by Lieutenant Gil Yankzer.

'Milo, listen up. I…'

'Why are you here Yankzer?'

'Why am I here? Listen Milo, I might loath your very existence, but you're my superior and I _must_ go to you if I ever have an idea. So do you wanna hear it or not?'

Milo paused. He rubbed his scarred chin and made a hand gesture to let Gil continue.

'I've gotten word back from the scouts I sent out. They say they've spotted smoke from a man-made fire some 15 miles northwest from here. They believe is Bastian and the boys.'

'That's fantastic! Have the men pack camp and be prepared to move out a.s.a.p. We'll catch them by surprise. They won't know what hit 'em, and I'll finally have my precious artifact in my grasp once again.' Milo grinned, then that very grin faded as he stared over at Gil.

'You're _still_ thinking about that?! Milo, I'm just getting my boys back. We're not going to kill Bastian; instead, we're destroying that artifact.'

'What is it with you, Yankzer? You've been so protective of Claze ever since we've gotten to this damned dead world.'

'It's none of your business, Milo. Now, like I said, we're going to infiltrate their camp and destroy the artifa…'

'No, no, no…You're mistaken, Yankzer. _We_ aren't going to do anything. _I'm_ going to get that artifact back.'

Gil put his hands behind him slowly. Milo heard a click, but tended not to pay attention to it. Turning his back to Gil, he continued to form a plan. Gil thought to himself, _this must be done,_ as he stepped closer to Milo, his hell-pistol in hand.

'If you continue to speak of that _thing_ Cohen, I'm going to be forced to…'

'Shh…' Milo held up his hand. 'Do ya hear that?'

Gil shook his head. 'You're not fooling me Cohen.'

Milo shook his head and turned to face Gil. 'I'm serious! Shut up and listen!'

Gil stopped everything and listened. The feint sound of men screaming was what Milo was talking about. Both men looked at each other and said the same thing at the same time: 'Bastian!'

Gil bolted to the door as Milo lagged behind. Gil rounded up the men and had them pack only necessities and grab their weapons. Stumbling on each other, the men rushed to get their stuff together. It took a record-breaking 45 seconds to pack the whole camp up. Gil led the regiment towards the screams as Milo brought up the rear.

'If my artifact is damaged, I'll kill whoever did it.'

Running wasn't helping the men. Gil got onto the vox and ordered the scouts in a brand new Chimera to bring it to then so they can move faster. It took the scouts an extra minute to retreat to the regiment and another 30 seconds to get the men aboard. With each mile passing, the screams grew louder and louder. Around half a mile from Bastian's camp, the screams stopped and an eerie silence covered the area. Gil stuck his head out the Chimera then hopped out and ran the rest of the way to the camp.

Fear engulfed him. Thoughts rushing through his brain: all bad. Milo halted the Chimera next to cover and ordered the men out. Milo then raced to the camp, arriving at the same time as Gil. The camp had been trashed. Tents destroyed, pieces of equipment scattered all over the place. Gil's eyes caught a stream of blood and followed it. Milo began searching the debris for the artifact while the rest of the men broke into squads to scout the perimeter.

Gil ripped up items of equipment and tossed them aside as he continued to follow the blood trail. Slight movement caught Gil's attention towards a pile of debris. His heart pounding, Gil rushed over and began digging through the debris. He looked up and saw Milo walking around.

'You friggin' moron!'

Milo stopped, pointing at himself, and shook his head.

'Get over here, Cohen! Now!'

'But I'm busy…'

'There's a survivor here dammit! Why don't you stop being stubborn and help!?'

Milo shrugged and lazily made his way towards Gil. Meanwhile, Gil frantically threw debris off the survivor. With just enough debris gone, Gil grabbed a visible hand and pulled the trooper to safety. He didn't bother taking the trooper's mask helmet or mask off, instead he laid him over one shoulder and took him to a safer area while calling over a medic. Milo rolled his eyes and continued his own search.

The medic began tending to the wounded. Gil knelt next to the trooper and finally pulled off his helmet and mask. It was Bastian. A sigh of relief left Gil as he stared down at Bastian. Milo caught a glimpse of Trooper Claze, loaded his hellgun and marched over, aiming it at the young soldier.

'Claze!'

Bastian lifted his head slowly. Gil jumped to his feet and stood in between the two.

'Outta the way, Yankzer.'

'I can't let you kill him, Milo.'

'What do ya mean!? I have full authority here. Now move!'

Gil stood firm. 'No.'

'Fine, then I'll kill you too.'

Milo aimed at Gil's stomach. He was about to pull the trigger when Bastian's feint voice spoke.

'Don't….please.'

Milo lowered his gun and Gil knelt next to Bastian once more. 'It's ok, Bastian. Dad's here.'

Milo's jaw dropped. Gil smiled at Bastian and put his hand on his head. 'Impossible!'

Gil stood up and walked over to Milo. 'He's my boy, Cohen.'

'But, the different last names….'

'Are fake. Bastian lied about his age and last name so they couldn't trace it back to me. He's only sixteen.'

'I don't believe you. Why would he lie about his age when both Cafin and Drexel are fifteen and seventeen and they _both _got into the Guard?'

'They lied about their ages too, Milo.'

'How would you know?'

'Because I helped them lie.'

James Cafin and Simon Drexel hopped out of the Chimera and Gil waved tem over. They saw Bastian and ran over to his aide. Milo grew furious, pushing Gil aside and lifting Bastian to his feet. 'Where's the artifact!?'

Bastian said nothing. Milo shook him. 'Where is it you friggin' piece of filth?'

Gil shoved Milo and caught Bastian. He held the young boy over one shoulder and glared back at Milo. 'Leave him be. He's been through enough today already.'

Gil, Cafin, Drexel, and Bastian headed back towards the Chimera. The other three soldiers of the attacked squad were dead and the artifact remained missing.

Chapter 2

Nightfall was short-lived as men marched onward towards the waypoint. Milo, angry about the loss of the artifact, led his men through the black desert. Lanterns were lit to guide the regiment through the dark. They had no clue how far off-track they were, nor did they remember about the small Chaos regime still lurking around. Milo switched the lenses on his helmet to "Night Vision" mode. He gazed out towards the horizon, a beam of green light covering each centimeter of space that he looked at. Whitish figures raced across his screen, catching his eyes quickly. He halted the men and signaled for them to crouch.

'Lanterns off, night vision on. We've got company.'

Lanterns dimmed and slowly, as the beeping sound of each man's helmet switched from normal to night vision mode.

'Sir, enemy spotted moving fast towards five o'clock.'

Milo turned. The figure stopped dead in its tracks, almost as if it were staring right back at him. A shining piece was protruding through the figure's arm. It was the artifact.

'There it is! There's _my_ artifact.'

Milo stood up and began walking slowly towards the figure. The regiment looked at each other and then to Milo in confusion. Trooper Cafin got on the vox. 'Sir? Sir, what are you doing?'

Milo didn't answer. He was too deadlock on the shimmer of the artifact. Milo thought to himself. _Finally, my artifact will be in my grasp once again._ He extended his hand out. The figure didn't budge. Instead, it looked at Milo, down at the artifact, back up to Milo, and then extended the artifact toward him. Gil kept an eye on the situation and then got on the vox.

'Veteran Sergeant Milo Cohen, return to the regiment at once.' Milo continued walking. Gil tried again. 'Cohen, get your friggin' ass back here!' Again, no response. Gil pushed himself up from the ground and was about to follow when a hand grabbed the leg of his pants. It was Bastian.

'Let him go dad.' Bastian's implanted eye whirred as it focused on Milo. Gil pulled his leg free.

'Son now is not the time to be saying that. Milo Cohen has lost his mind, and letting him get hold of the artifact is pure insanity. This _must_ be taken care of.'

Gil swung his hellgun up to his hands and looked through the sight. He moved slowly between Milo and the enemy, debating which one he should take out. Milo's hand was almost touching the artifact. There was no time left. Gil picked a target and fired, sending him stumbling backwards and a huge explosion where Milo and the enemy had been. The troopers scrambled to their feet and led by Gil, rushed over to where they last saw Milo. Blinding light was immensely painful, so the men switched off their night vision. When they arrived to Milo's aide, however, they saw a huge ball of energy floating in the air. Milo's visor was cracked, but he was ok. The Chaos Marine was dead, something piercing through the gut of his armour. Troopers Drexel and Cafin jogged over to examine the dead Marine, paying no attention to the ball of energy. Gil ordered the troopers to drag Milo back as he and Bastian stood in front of the ball of energy.

'What do you make of it Da…I mean Lieutenant Yankzer?'

Gil scratched his chin with his bionic hand. Pondering for a moment, he used the very same bionic hand to touch the ball. Pulling it out slowly, he noticed smoke coming off his hand, small parts of it eroding. Cafin and Drexel returned to Gil's side, holding something in their hands. Gil looked over at them and then down at their hands. It was the artifact, broken and its shine disappeared. Gil looked back up at them, pulling his visor up, his face pale and whiter than a ghost. Cafin tilted his head.

'Is…there something wrong, Lieutenant?'

'Run.'

The boys looked at Gil.

'Did you not understand me? Run!'

Cafin, Drexel, Bastian and Gil took one step when the ball of energy erupted and sent a shockwave three miles long. The 5th regiment was sent tumbling. Sand got in Bastian's eye implant and it began to whir continuously, attempting to get a focus on something. Cafin's helmet went rouge so Gil grabbed hold of Cafin and covered his head. Simon was curled up and hiding. Milo slowly lifted his visor and gazed up in utter fright. Protecting Cafin's head on his side, Gil stared up at what appeared from the eruption. Milo babbled, not making any sense at times.

'So it be true. He lived inside his shell for centuries only to be awoken for another day of world domination. And I be in his presences, waiting for what fate I can only dream of.' Milo stood up, a smile twitching on his face. 'Arise Daemon Prince. Arise and tell me what I must do so you can rule once more.'

Gil glared at Milo. 'You friggin' heretic! You've had these intentions ever since we found that blasted artifact! The Emperor curse your damned soul!'

Standing ten or so feet tall, holding his glave, the Daemon Prince looked about him. He stared down at Milo and the regiment, and then noticed Milo walking towards him. He tilted his head with interest.

'Yes. Yes o' great Daemon Prince. I am at your command.'

Gil couldn't stomach looking for too long. The scent of death surrounded the Daemon Prince. Using one free hand, he pulled Bastian over and Bastian dug his head into Gil's side. Huddled in a group, Gil held onto the boys and closed his eyes. Milo walked right up to the Prince, a smile now painted on his face. The Prince grinned in amusement, but his grin faded when he noticed the double-headed eagle insignia of the Imperium embroidered in Milo's carapace armour. With one forceful swipe of his glave, Milo was ripped in half with no time to have a reaction. The top half of his body rolled and stopped when it bounced against the Prince's foot. A high pitched scream filled the area as the Daemon Prince laughed. His eyes caught Gil's and the glave swung up in the air.

Chapter 3

Gil's eyes widened. The shrieking laughter began again as the glave started its decent towards Gil and the boys. A sudden blast from Gil's right stopped the wretched shrill. Gil looked at the Prince and noticed its glave was now on the ground, the Prince's hand attached to it. Gil turned to see who fired the shot and smiled when he saw Simon holding a smoking hellgun. Simon lowered the gun and smiled back when suddenly he was snatched up by the Daemon Prince. Simon screamed, pleading to the Prince to let him go. Gil pulled out his hellpistol and got on the vox.

'Fire on the Daemon Prince! Save Trooper Drexel!'

The rest of the men sprang into action, opening fire as instructed. Burning and piercing the Prince's body, the men inched closer. However, the Prince's grip only grew stronger on Simon. Gil and the other men could hear the sound of bones shattering as Simon yelped. More shots fired and still no effect. One trooper rushed the Daemon Prince, pulled out his dagger and began stabbing the Prince's leg frantically. The Prince winced and looked down at the trooper. The glave began to shake. Holding out his handless arm, it seemed as if it were using all of its daemonic power to do something.

Suddenly, the glave swung up and sliced the trooper's spine, but caught a piece of the Prince as well. An ear-shattering scream flew out of the Prince. Its grip loosened on Simon, causing the young trooper to fall to the ground. He lay motionless and Gil ordered for someone to retrieve him. Gil told Cafin and Bastian to help as well as he stood and faced the Daemon Prince. Loading his hellpistol with his own customized bullets, he held the pistol up towards the chaotic creature.

'This is for harming Simon.'

He shot once, the bullet seeping through the Prince's arm, exploding from within. The Prince screamed again, grabbing its wound. Gil loaded the next bullet into the chamber and took aim again.

'This is for the good of the Imperium.'

Another shot, another explosion. This time, in the Prince's lower stomach. The Prince stumbled backwards, clenching an open wound in its gut. Gil loaded his pistol once more.

'And this is for me.'

Gil fired. The bullet made a home between the Daemon Prince's eyes and exploded, sending blood and pieces of rotting flesh everywhere. The remaining portion of the Prince dropped lifelessly to the ground. Gil dropped to one knee, staring at the epitome of Chaos. Bastian ran over to Gil, sliding on the ground stammering in excitement. Trooper James Cafin put a hand on Gil's shoulder and looked at the corpse of the Daemon Prince. Two troopers carried Simon off toward camp to be treated, while others scouted the area just in case. Gil patted Cafin's hand with his bionic one.

'This battle is done for now,'

Cafin smiled at Gil. 'It seems you're in charge now, sir.'

Gil chuckled and slowly stood up. He hugged Bastian and put his arms around both boys. The three walked off towards the regiment in laughter. When they arrived next to the men, silence shrouded the area. One by one, each man raised his arm and saluted Lieutenant Gil Yankzer. He has since led the men of the 5th Regiment. What he failed to remember was a body left due to suspicion that it was dead. However, Gil was deathly wrong.

To be continued…

10


End file.
